I Don't Belong Here
by OpenBook
Summary: Baron Meier and Charlotte have a child, who grows up to be a protector of vampires against humans who wish them to be extinct. What will happen when D, whose job is the exact opposite, encounters this person?
1. Chapter I: Eden

**I Don't Belong Here**

**Chapter I**

**~Eden~**

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**Author's Note: **Well hello dear readers! So, this is another fanfiction that I am writing, that I hope some people will enjoy out there. This story will be rated M because of violence language, sexual innuendos, and other things in that category so watch out! I hope you enjoy it, thanks for reading and reviews (especially constructive critisism) are welcome in all aspects! Even questions! There is a lot of jumping in the chapter and not everything may be clear but that is the point. To add mystery and not giving you the entire story. What is written in italics is basically the prologue and that is written in normal font is present time. Hope that cleared some things up for you guys!

**Enjoy!  
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**_Three years after Meier and Charlotte's joining in the stars…_**

_The shrill scream penetrated the walls of the castle, engulfing every room and every hallway with mixed despair and anxiety. A solitary figure dwelled in the shadows in one of the rooms, lit only by a single candle upon a dusted table which decorated the center. _

_He was restless, pacing back and forth, teeth grinding, his undead heart aching as if it had administered a fresh wound from battle. _

_"Meier." _

_The soft whisper could be easily heard by the vampire noble through the walls of secret containing stone. His vampire eyes grew wet in despair as he stared into the tiny shining light of the candle, a light much like the woman he loved. A single illuminating force, that even though small, lit up the infinite darkness in his heart. She was the only one to have ever brought him love. _

_"Charlotte." He groaned in absolute agony, clenching his fists tight, his long sharp mails digging into the palms of his hands, drawing thick red blood. _

_This was the one thing that he could not save her from. All his strength and knowledge of the darkness could not hope to help her. He was useless, utterly useless. _

_Another cry, this one weaker then the last, echoed within the confines of the castle. Meier growled low, a throaty rasp of despair and terror. He fell upon his knees ungracefully, clenching his eyes shut and covering his ears with his hands, the sides of his face becoming smeared in his own blood. He could not bear to hear her wails of torment any longer. God let him die, let him fall, waste away into nothing. Anything was better than this._

_Suddenly the door leading out to the hallway was opened, light was spilled erratically into the room. Meier quickly got to his feet, spinning towards the exit of his cage of self loathing and fear._

_A petit woman stood before him, the light from the hallway outlined her dark figure, hiding the details of her appearance from him._

_Her hands and forearms were covered in red, ruby droplets slid down her arms and hands, then were left dangling at the points of her long nails before falling upon the marbled floor with a crystalline chime._

_Meier's nostrils reeled at the scent, his eyes becoming red and snake-like as his lips peeled back revealing long pronounced fangs. The blood was so potent, so alive that he could taste it in the air. But it was not the components of the blood that brought this undying need and unshakable thirst to him, it was the fact that the blood running down this female vampire's hands was Charlotte's._

_"H-how is she?" The question was choked and forced through Meier's lips, his energy and will gradually making itself absent from his body._

_The woman shook her head, eyes downcast in both shame and sorrow._

_"I am sorry master. We have tried our best, but…"_

_Meier lunged for the tiny woman at inhuman speed, grasping her arms in his cold dead clutches, shaking her back and forth, his fangs gleaming in the light, his eyes wide and breaching the gap between sanity and insanity. _

_"But what? Do you mean to tell me that she…"_

_"She is not dead yet master. But I am afraid that she will soon be. She has asked me to summon you to her."_

_Meier hesitated, his grip suddenly becoming tighter around her arms._

_"Do not worry master. I have cleaned away all the blood. It is safe for you to approach her."_

_Meier clenched his teeth, then slowly releasing the woman, allowing his hands to dangle by his sides as he turned his face to the left, staring at the floor. He was so ashamed of his inability to control his emotions that he couldn't even look into her big golden eyes which were filled with pity and sadness. He was once a proud and noble vampire, whose cool headedness and demeanour brought him respect from the vampire community. Now look at him, look what the smile of a small fragile little human woman could do. _

_"I am sorry for my actions Maria. Please forgive me." Whispered Meier, his voice drowning in the emptiness of the deserted hallway and his heart. _

_"There is nothing to forgive Meier. Go to her now."_

_Meier lifted his gaze from the floor, turning his head to look into the deep, innocent and kind golden pools of one of his dearest friends._

_"Thank you Maria."_

_Maria smiled kindly and while bowing her head in respect, took a step back allowing Meier to pass by her and to make his way to Charlotte._

_Before she left his range of sight, Meier caught a glimpse of Maria looking longingly at the crimson crystals swirling in her hands. Her eyes changed form gold to red, her fangs popping out of her mouth and her breath became short. She closed her eyes in ecstasy, allowing herself a single lick, a single taste, before collapsing on the floor and entering a frenzy. Meier looked away, feeling a sense of gladness that he was not the only one slave to his desires, and continued to make his way to Charlotte._

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**_Six Years Later… _**

_Thunder growled low in the sky like a rabid dog, followed by the strike of white fire upon the earth as silver rain fell mercilessly upon grass, dirt and rock._

_The night sky in the countryside was dark and desolate, the moon nor stars did not make an appearance. _

_This rural area was very spread out. The people that lived here preferred to live alone, separate of each other, yet in range to another living being if their help was needed. It was a peaceful place which very few knew existed, and the perfect place for accomplishing the task that was at hand._

_A large cloaked figure approached one of the farm houses, walking slowly as if impaired; the rain had soaked it's cloak right through, making it no more useful then a torn umbrella. Thunder boomed again in the sky, so loud that it appeared to make the very mountains outlining the region tremble. The dark figure stopped momentarily and bent down, whispering soft reassuring words into the confines of his cloak, and then proceeded his journey down the mud slicked path._

_The figure walked for many more miles before he reached his destination. A small little farm house with a vegetable garden in the back and a small barn to it's right. The figure paused, studying the house as if hesitating, but then he sighed and proceeded. _

_As he figure approached the house, the front door suddenly opened, revealing a beautiful middle aged woman dressed in a dirt loose shirt and pants which were soaked with sweat and rain. She held up high an ancient looking lantern, her deep blue eyes glowed unnaturally in the night._

_"Who's there?"_

_The woman called out, her voice was deep and powerful, undeniable with it's presence in the world._

_The figure stopped again, remaining completely silent as if the question was either not understood or not considered important._

_"Answer me stranger or get off my property before I set the wolves on you."_

_The figure then removed the hood which was covering his face, revealing his identity to the faint light of the lantern. The woman gasped._

_"M…Meier?" She whispered in disbelief, covering his parted lips with her left hand, her eyes wide in shock._

_"Xhex. I am sorry to be intruding at this time…but…"_

_"How on earth did you find me!? Why didn't you reveal yourself sooner? Quick come inside, you can warm yourself by the fire." Xhex said, turning down her lantern and making her way back inside the house._

_Meier bowed his head in gratitude._

_"Thank you Xhex, for your kindness."_

_Xhex paused in mid stride, her muscles locking her powerful body in place. She looked back at Meier, her eyebrows high, her pale face submerged in confusion at the sight of this powerful vampire's bowed head. There was a pause between the old acquaintances where there was nothing but the night wind and rain, but the realization of the passing of time did not need words or actions to state itself evident and in existence. Xhex smiled, suppressing a little chuckle from the confines of her lips._

_"It seems that the passing of time has changed you Meier. You seem much more humble then you used to be."_

_Meier said nothing to this, but again it was not needed. He knew it to be the truth, and so did Xhex. _

_"Well, come on inside then,"_

_Meier followed Xhex into her little home, and shut the door behind him. The house was indeed small, as he could feel the hair on his head brush against the ceiling, but it was warm and comfortable, the perfect place for what he had in mind. The door of the house had lead directly to the kitchen, where a table, several cupboards and pots and pans were neatly placed in their rightful place._

_"Wait there a moment Meier. I will bring you a blanket to help you dry off."_

_Xhex placed the lantern on the table and then proceeded to walk out of the kitchen, but before she could disappear into the darkness of her home, Meier called out._

_"Could you please bring me two blankets Xhex?"_

_Xhex paused, eyeing the once proud vampire to which the word 'please' never used to leave his lips, even when it concerned his life._

_"Two? But why would you need two?"_

_Meier did not answer, instead he stared into the fire, refusing to have eye contact with her. Xhex sighed._

_"Alright. If you insist."_

_She quickly retrieved two blankets, then returned to Meier in her kitchen. She placed the blankets on the table next to him and took a seat._

_"So Meier, what do you need a little rouge vampire like me for?" Xhex asked, deadly curious as to why Meier would come to all this trouble to seek her out, when she had made such efforts to make sure that she could never be found. _

_Being a vampire in this world was dangerous. More dangerous still was being a vampire when surrounded by humans. Humans may have been the physically and mentally weaker species, but they were very much like ants. Separate they posed no threat at all…but together…they were an unstoppable force that could not be beaten no matter what the adversary. Not to mention that vampires were solitary creatures who were not in the habit of forming large groups in order to fight off humans. That was why Xhex had severed all her ties with the vampire community and moved out here, where she was safe and no one could harm her or judge her._

_Xhex studied Meier, deciding not to force the answer out of him. He would tell her in time; that was the vampire way, patience and serenity, the answers to all of your questions would come to you in time. _

_Xhex had been surprised at Meier's appearance when he had arrived merely minutes ago. His usual aristocratic aura was completely vacant, and he looked tired, so tired, a type of exhaustion that could be seen in all beings, even the immortal, but was rare none the less._

_"Before I tell you what I have come to see you about, I must have your solemn oath on one thing Xhex." Said Meier, breaking the silence within the home._

_Xhex eyebrows narrowed in suspicion. He wanted her to swear an oath? What kind of oath? What was his intention? Well, she was never going to find out if she didn't agree. _

_"Alright Meier. What do you want me to solemnly swear by?"_

_"I want you to swear on the blood and bone of our ancestors that the knowledge of what I shall reveal to you tonight will not leave this room, and that in this knowledge you will do everything in your power to keep it safe, even if it results in your death."_

_Xhex was momentarily taken aback by Meier's fiery words, but the surprise quickly left her. Meier would not have sought her out for a penniless nothing. His tone and face were dead serious, and she knew that this was indeed something marvelous to be seen. _

_"Even if I die. That is certainly risking a lot Meier."_

_Meier's eyes were removed from the fire and unleashed upon her own. Xhex had to fight to keep an emotionless façade. Such despair in those eyes, such sorrow, such loneliness._

_"Please Xhex. You are the only one I trust in this world to do take care of what is most precious to me right now."_

_Xhex looked into Meier's eyes, and knew that she could not deny him, not in this state of ultimate desperation._

_"Alright Meier I swear on the blood and bone of our ancestors that I shall do whatever you bid of me without fail. Now what is it that you wish of me?"_

_Meier did not move, instead he stared at Xhex, studying her, watching her as if trying to visualize her sincerity and honesty. Xhex was not offended at all, knowing these hard times, it was very difficult to trust anybody, even someone you have known since childhood. _

_"I need you to take care of something for me."_

_Meier said, gingerly removing his rain drenched cloak solely with his left hand._

_Xhex raised an eyebrow at this._

_"You want me to guard something? Let me guess is it some kind of vampire slaughtering artifact? Money? A book of spells?"_

_"No." Replied Meier, either totally unaware of, or ignoring Xhex's teasing._

_"Well then what is it…"_

_The rest of Xhex's sentence was ripped from her throat from the shock of what she saw next. _

_No wonder Meier had asked for two blankets. _

_He gently pulled off his cloak, revealing what was underneath it. Under his cloak, and gently cradled against the vampire's chest rested a sleeping little girl. She was partially wet from the rain, but obviously well protected and sheltered in Meier's arms. Her thumb rested between her rosy lips, her mouth moving ever so slightly with her gentle sucking. Her long delicate brown eyelashes rested like butterflies at the top of her cheeks, long wavy chestnut brown hair framed her shoulders and dwarfed her body with it's fullness. Her skin was as pale as the new moon. She did not move, or make a sound, but rested in absolute contentment, knowing that as long as she was in this vampire's arms, she would be safe from all harm. She appeared to be no older than six years old._

_"W-w…what is the meaning of this?" Stuttered Xhex breathlessly, disbelief setting her nerves aflame. Meier glanced at the child, but quickly looked away, as if it pained him to look upon her. _

_"I want you to take care of her Xhex, raise her, like your own." Whispered Meier, his arms tightening ever so slightly around the child, causing the little girl to grunt in her sleep then reposition herself. _

_Meier then reached out for a blanket, dissembled it from it's folded position and placed it over the girl, wrapping her in a warm cocoon. The girl did not move or make a sound as he did so, but her breath became steadily calmer. This tenderness from Meier was so alien to Xhex that she had to repeat her next questions in her head several times before she could speak it correctly._

_"But who is she Meier? Where did she come from?"_

_Meier's clawed hand began stoking the goose pimpled flesh of the girl underneath the blanket in a sort of parting way, like a human petting a dog that they knew they would never see again. Meier did not reply to Xhex's questions._

_"Meier."_

_Xhex implied, trying to get his attention. Meier was silent for another moment before replying._

_"Her name is Eden. She is a dhampire, born of the union from a human and a vampire."_

_There was a slight pause, where thunder roared and lightening flashed, wind howled and rain wept. Xhex stood to her feet._

_"A dhampire? But how is this possible?"_

_"It is far from impossible Xhex."_

_"But in the world that we live in! How could such a creature come into existence? How could such a bond be achieved by two different species? Species who are at war! This child's very existence is a direct controversy to our world!"_

_"I realize that Xhex." Replied Meier calmly._

_"Then who the hell is she that you would go through such lengths to protect a half-breed that is more trouble then she is worth?" _

_Meier looked at the girl once more, before lifting the blanket that was nestled around her, and pulling it over her face, in order to completely hide her from himself and the rest of the world._

_"She is my daughter." _

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**One hundred and twelve years later…**

"You've got to be fucking kidding me." Mumbled Alex the stable boy as he made the final attachments between the cybernetic horses and an excessively elegant white carriage.

He eyed his friend and fellow stable boy, Tannin, who had just finished securing the horses on the other side. Tannin walked over lazily, which was his way, making sure to kick up dust with his large sagging feet. The horses twittered uneasily at his demeanour.

"I kid you not Alex. In fact, I just saw Mr. Marder cough up three million dollars for the bloody bastard so he could escort them safely to Paris…the new Paris that is."

"But why the hell would they need escorting?"

Grumbled Alex, upset that his master was making him do all this extra work today, just because he was going to take a vacation. Tannin handed Alex a large bucket of water in order to give the horses a last sip of water before their long journey.

"They have a deadline to meet, because yesterday's storm they are behind schedule, and in order for Mr. Marder to get to Paris in time for his meeting with the rest of the Royal Council he needs to go through vampire country."

Alex rolled his eyes at the easily accessed information that Tannin had just unearthed.

"You know what you need to do Tannin, is to quit eavesdropping on your boss before he finds out and neuters you like a dog."

Alex took a drink of water from the bucket while Tannin laughed.

"What makes you think I'm eavesdropping? I have never eavesdropped in my life."

Alex snorted in disbelief, wiping some of the sweat off his forehead.

"Oh yeah? Then how the hell are you getting this information?"

Tannin grinned wickedly, then turned his back on Alex and began to walk away in that annoying lazy manner.

"Let's just say that the maids like to talk after sex."

A sudden anger boiled within Alex, but with countless times of practice he was able to smother it and hide it easily from Tannin. Alex sighed, shoving the bucket under one of the horses noses, making the creature snort in annoyance, but bend down and drink none the less.

"Let's get back to the previous subject please. Ok, so I get why they would need an escort, but couldn't they find a more credible vampire hunter? I mean, the guy is a fucking dhampire. Who knows what might happen with him around. I mean, I wouldn't trust him."

"Well, Mr. Marder apparently does. And he must really trust him well because his daughter, Cornelia, is going to accompany him."

Both boys sighed simultaneously at the sky at the mention of the beautiful girl's name. Cornelia, she was an angel on earth, a young woman so beautiful that she must have divine origins.

"Are you done yet!" Roared an powerful dry voice laced with age and crankiness.

Both stable boys froze and turned around to see old Mr. Marder himself, Cornelia, who was dressed in a beautiful emerald gown by his side, and the suspected dhampire himself who was behind them, already on his dark horse, his face positively stony, giving nothing and asking for absolutely nothing else in return. Both boys felt a shudder slither down their spines at the presence of the silent, dark and menacing creature.

"Y-yes sir. The horses are all equipped and ready to travel." Tannin said before they were yelled at again. Mr. Marder nodded.

"Good."

Alex than ran to open the carriage door for the father and daughter. Cornelia approached the carriage first, her lush blonde hair was worn loosely and beautifully curled around her angelically beautiful face. Alex extended a trembling hand out to Cornelia. She sighed, not looking him in the eye, took his hand and allowed him to help her into the carriage. Mr. Marder followed, but before fully entering the carriage he turned to face he vampire hunter.

"Whatever inhuman thing we come upon along the way, I don't care if it means us harm or not, I want you to kill it. Do you understand dhampire? My daughter's life is much more important than that of those creatures."

Alex's gaze switched to that of the dhampire. The hunter said nothing, but his eyes burned into those of Mr. Marder's. Then without a single word of acknowledgement, let slack his horses reins and began to position himself next to the carriage. Tannin grunted, pulled himself up and sat upon the drivers seat and grasped the reins of the cybernetic horses. Alex closed the carriage door and stepped back, then made his way to Tannin.

"Safe journey Tannin." Whispered Alex.

Tannin nodded in return, followed by a naughty inconspicuous wink. Alex blushed slightly, then quickly turned away, lest Tannin see the faint color on his cheeks. Tannin, like the little devil he was, laughed mischievously.

"Don't worry about me Alex, I'll be alright, I promise."

"I'll hold you to that Tannin."

There was silence between the boys, goodbye being at the tip of their tongues but unobtainable in heard language. Alex had to break the silence for awkwardness sake.

"So…what is this meeting with the Royal Council about?"

"We're ready stable boy!" shouted Mr. Marder from the confines of the ridiculously frilly carriage.

Tannin swiftly leaned towards Alex, their faces becoming only inches apart.

"To discuss the extermination of the vampire race."

Alex's mouth became agape, to which Tannin took advantage of and swiftly captured the boys lips with his, making a quick sweep of tongue, and sweet pressing of lips before Alex could respond. He then pulled away and smirked wickedly at Alex's red face and flustered expression.

"There's something to remember me by." Tannin whispered then he slapped the horse's reins, causing the carriage to lurch forward, the dhampire along side of it, forward and onward to Paris and the meeting which would change the world forever.

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Alright! Finished! Chapter two is coming your way!!!


	2. Chapter II: Reflections

**I Don't Belong Here**

**Chapter II**

**~Reflections~**

_There's a girl in the mirror  
I wonder who she is  
Sometimes I think I know her  
Sometimes I really wish I did  
There's a story in her eyes  
Lullabies and goodbyes  
When she's looking back at me  
I can tell her heart is broken easily  
~Girl in the Mirror (Brittany Spears)_

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**Author's Note:** YA-HA! An update! Finally! Well thanks to the two people who reviewed last time, and I hope you will find this chapter satisfying. :)

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The voices, more often then not, had frequently visited Eden in her sleep without fail. No, these were not the voices of monsters or phantoms or horrible memories of abuse. They were just the voices of her younger self and her father, echoing in the long laden labyrinth of her memories.

This time the silver pool of her mind's eye rippled a frequently replayed and fond memory.

Her father and her younger self were sitting in a richly decorated room, perfumed with delicious incense that she could easily remember and sorely missed, a comforting scent that could only be harvested in the City of Stars where she had spent a small portion of her childhood.

Her father had been sitting behind a dark brown varnished oak desk, a pen in his hand along with several papers outlining complicated aspects of engineering which layered the desk beneath his clawed hands. Eden remembered sitting a few feet in front of the desk, playing with a deck of worn out blue cards, her favorite pastime, besides playing with her father of course, which had been on such rare occasions that she could count the events on the fingers of a single hand.

She watched as her younger self finished shuffling the cards, then rose to her feet in the clumsy demeanor that a young child uses and ran up to her father, throwing her arms over the desk and shoving the cards over the papers and into his line of sight in a desperate attempt to snare his attention.

_"Pick a card Papa."_ She demanded, gently bouncing on the tips of her toes, emphasizing her desperate want to play.

Her father had stopped writing, then sighing, he closed his eyes and dropped his pen.

_"I'm afraid that I can't now my little lamb. I'm busy."_ He then pulled a piece of paper out from under his hand in order to show her the complicated mess scribbled on it.

_"Do you see?"_ He asked, tapping the paper with a single sharp claw. Eden had looked upon the paper with confusion.

_"What is this Papa?_" She asked, discarding her playing cards and taking the paper into her tiny hands and flipping the scribbled words and sketched images both left and right, up and down, trying to make sense of the adult nonsense.

_"They are plans…now don't be so rough with them Eden, you'll wrinkle them."_ Warned her father, gingerly plucking the sheet out of her infant hands.

_"Plans for what Papa?"_

She asked eyeing him curiously, leaning foreword some more so that he might look at her. He didn't.

_"Plans for our trip."_

_"A trip? Really? Where are we going to go Papa? I hope it's somewhere warm! I like the City of the Stars, but it gets awfully cold here sometimes. Will there be horses there Papa? I've never seen a horse before, only in story books, but I want to see one because they look so pretty and I would like to pet one. What about…"_

Her father had chuckled softly then, his lips pulled back in a rare gentle smile, exposing brilliant white fangs. He looked at her then, his eyes and normally stern facial features gently softened as he looked at her.

_"We will be going to Earth Eden. Mama's home before I brought her here. I think that it should be her final resting place."_

At the mention of her Mama, Eden eyed the small golden locket draped delicately around her father's neck, catching the light with a golden twinkle. Her father caught the change of direction in her gaze, then smiled when he realized what she was looking at.

_"You want to see Mama again?"_

Eden had nodded, extending and opening her tiny white palm, as her father removed the locket and placed it in her hand. Eden then proceeded to wedge her nail between the two golden sheets, until a tiny snap sounded, and the locket was opened, revealing a tiny image of her mother.

_"Mama was really pretty wasn't she Papa?"_

Sighed Eden as she stared at the picture of the elegant queen to whom she was unable to draw any deep emotional contact with.

_"She was."_ Was all her Papa had said.

There was a pause then, between father and daughter, an empty space that was supposed to be filled by a mother, but unfortunately that moment was nothing but a vacant position in time and space that could never be filled.

_"I wish that I could see her in real life."_ Eden said wistfully, closing the locket again and returning it to it's rightful place around her father's neck. Her father said nothing for a moment, but then he pulled back, his chair squealing against the floor as he pushed himself away from the desk. He patted his leg.

_"Come here Eden. I'll tell you a secret."_

Eden's eyes lit up at the prospect of sitting on her father's lap. She scrambled around the desk and up onto her father's leg, he helped her up most of the way. When she had sat herself upon his leg, her father leaned in and whispered into the shell of her ear.

_"Do you know the silver glass sheet that shows the world around you but not yourself?"_

_"The mirror Papa?"_

_"Yes."_

_"But it's useless! I can't even see myself in it. What is so secret about a mirror Papa?"_

Her Papa had paused for a moment, but then resumed his telling of the secret.

_"If you look, really, really hard into the mirror, you can see Mama's ghost."_

Eden's young eyes had popped open wide, her mouth falling agape. This _was_ a big secret! A wonderful secret!

_"Really Papa? I can really see Mama?"_ She asked enthusiastically, her heart pounded in excitement. Her Papa's smile was long gone from his face, his stern and sad features returning, but his voice still remained soft and yielding.

_"Yes. But remember, it's our secret, you can't tell anyone. Promise?"_

_"I promise Papa!"_ Eden cried out.

Of course, in reality, the existence of her mother's ghost had been fabricated by her father in order to ease her solitude. Due to the fact that she was a dhampire, when she looked as hard as she could into a mirror, she saw a ghostly transparent figure looking back directly at her. The figure had looked exactly like her mother, except much, much younger. At first, she was delighted at this, but she then later discovered that it wasn't her mother, but the remnants of her human reflection. With that discovery came that of why her father avoided looking at her. Her great resemblance of her mother caused him great pain and grief every time he looked upon her face. In spite of this, Eden never felt bitter or held a grudge against her father against it. It bothered her, yes, but she knew that it was neither of their fault.

"**Eden**!"

The pool of her dreams rippled, distorting her memories. Eden grumbled at the disorientating event.

"**Eden! Eden! Wake up!**"

The pool had now become a splashing pond of blackness, her memories now far away in the confinements of her mind.

"**Eden! For God's sake wake up you lazy dhampire**!"

The plain of dreams shattered, bringing Eden to the surface of consciousness and out of the black restless ocean of sleep. She did not open her eyes however and continued on pretending to sleep...wanting to piss off the voice a little more.

"**Eden! Wake up**!"

This time her shoulder was violently shoved with a hard object.

"I know you're awake you little devil, and if you don't come to right this instance I am going to go medieval on you. I don't care if you had outgrown my beatings or not, you are still my daughter, and I have every right in the world to beat your ungrateful ass."

Well, if that wasn't a wake up call Eden didn't know what was. At that Eden opened her eyes to reveal a very pissed off Xhex wielding a very intimidating looking stick. Eden would have bet one hundred dollars that the vampire had purposely sought out the scariest looking stick in the forest just for the purpose of waking her up.

Eden sat up and yawned, stretching her arms into the air and cracking several bones.

"Welcome back to the world of the living." Xhex mumbled sarcastically, placing her stick into the ground and leaning her body weight onto it.

"Geez, you could have let me sleep for another hour Xhex. What time is it anyway?"

Xhex gripped the stick again, and shook it menacingly inches in front of Eden's face.

"I'll tell you what time it is girl. It's time for you to get your butt on that horse and to get to your next job. Sleeping under apple trees _does not _put food on the table. You should be ashamed!"

Eden yawned again, then stood up. She was not as tall or muscular as Xhex, but if they were ever to fight, both females knew who would be the victor. Eden smirked at the person who was the closest thing to a mother that she ever had.

"Yes, but it does wonders to skin composition. You're starting to show a few wrinkles so I suggest you try it."

Eden barely had the time to duck out of the way of a perfectly angled swipe of the deadly stick which would have cracked her upside the head if she had not. She laughed at Xhex's puff of annoyance when she realized that she had missed.

"How in the world was I able to put up with you for over a century?" Xhex shouted in aggravation at the sky, lifting her arms and hands to the sky in an overly dramatic fashion.

Eden said nothing, but instead made her way to her horse, to which Xhex had already saddled and strapped all the equipment she needed for her journey. She had even packed her an extra dagger and change of clothing. Eden snorted, rolling her eyes. Mothers. Eden mounted her grey stallion with ease, stroking his mane tenderly as he seemed a bit off that night.

Eden's horse was defiantly a rarity, and one that had taken her forever to find. Her horse was not cybernetic, but wholly real, composed of flesh, heart and spirit. Eden rarely got attached to anything, but she loved her horse very much, he was her constant companion on her travels, the only one who was always there right along with her. His deep brown eyes were large, kind, and fiery.

Eden gently rubbed her horse's belly with her foot, urging him forward. Xhex stopped her rant towards the sky when she noticed that Eden was about to depart.

"What would you ever do without me Eden?" sighed Xhex, shaking her head of cropped messy blond hair. Eden shrugged, pulling on the reins and stopping her horse momentarily.

"I don't know…be late all the time?"

"You'd be poor, that's what you'd **be**!"

Eden chuckled at the flustered old vampire, wishing that she could spend another week with her in her home, but knew that her duty called to her above all things. There was a moment of silence before Xhex spoke again.

"But above the money Eden, know what your true goal in this business is."

"I know Xhex."

"Our kind is steadily becoming extinct, hunted and slaughtered by both humans and Vampire Hunters. If it wasn't for you Eden, we would have been given the last page in the book of life a long time ago."

"I am not of your kind Xhex." Eden mumbled.

"Poppycock! You may be a dhampire Eden, but you fight for all vampires everywhere. And for that we are eternally grateful and accept you as our own."

"Tell that to the nobility. They have disowned me from the race when I was twelve remember?"

"Well the nobility can take their pampered and oiled asses, and can try and fight off the growing threat of humans by themselves. The only reason that they are alive, is because you wish them to be."

Eden became silent, digesting that fact. She was a hunter of humans, but above all, a protector of vampires, even though they cast her out as a half breed. She was not allowed to eat at their table, to talk to them, or be be a part of the whole, however, she was more then welcome to bleed for them.

It was a pitiful life, one of murder and savage slaughter, but she knew nothing else. Her father must have not wanted this for her, but then again, why did he bring her back to earth, if he knew that it was inevitable that she be treated as an outcast? Well, the past was the past, intentions no longer mattered. What mattered was her family. Xhex.

Nothing would take her away from her goal, nothing would make her stop, no matter how monstrous vampires were perceived by the rest of the world. They were the only sort of family that she had ever known, she would not allow them to drift into the gallows of extinction, for then she would be truly and undoubtedly alone.

"I'll send you the money once I collect it. Until then, goodbye Xhex."

"Goodbye Eden. And be careful. Remember that I love you."

Eden then urged her horse into a steady gallop, and disappeared into the night leaving Xhex alone underneath the apple tree.


End file.
